Los Angeles exotic-car dealer Obi Okeke was sound asleep when his phone rang one day at 3 a.m. last year.

It was Floyd Mayweather.

The undefeated welterweight champ had a mission for his trusted dealer: Have a Bugatti Veyron sitting in the driveway of his Las Vegas mansion in 12 hours.

It was time for Dr. Bugatti, as Okeke is sometimes called, to perform a miracle.

So Okeke jumped in the shower and headed to Fusion Luxury Motors, the Chatsworth, Calif., store he opened in 2012 and co-owns. He checked his notes, hopped on a plane, secured the car and drove it to Mayweather himself.

And he did it in 11 hours.

That’s life when you’re dealing with the spontaneous Mayweather, who, according to some reports, could rake in as much as $180 million this Saturday when he faces off with fellow superstar Manny Pacquiao.

Okeke said there’s no room for mediocrity when dealing with Mayweather. The polarizing boxer has high expectations for himself, Okeke said, and therefore does for everyone around him.

Okeke has sold 39 cars to Mayweather, including a $3.2 million Ferrari Enzo and three Bugatti Veyrons that are worth $6.2 million combined. In a career spanning nearly 30 years, Okeke has sold cars to the likes of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jessica Simpson, Ellen DeGeneres, Chris Tucker and more.

He started his career as a Chevrolet dealer in 1987 and eventually moved on to manage stores for Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, BMW, Ferrari and Maserati before he started his own.

Okeke, 53, spoke with Automotive News about his life and Mayweather adventures.

Q: Were you born in the U.S.?

A: I was not. My father is from Nigeria; my mother is from Ohio. I was born in Nigeria. My parents have been married for 57 years. When I was a kid, Nigeria had a civil war, so we escaped from Nigeria as refugees [to Ohio], just my mom and the kids. Then we went back to Nigeria. My parents weren’t crazy about the school system. My mom’s best friend was in charge of Swissair for western Africa, so they shipped me off to Switzerland.

When did you first meet Floyd?

Back in 2008, 2009. I was general manager of a Ferrari dealership. A business associate brought him to the Ferrari dealership. That was the first time I met Floyd, and then I transacted on two Ferraris with him.

How has your approach to the business changed over the years from working at a Chevy dealership to now?

My parents sent me to school in Switzerland as a young child, so I’ve always been very close to the European cars. And that’s why I was with Volkswagen. I tried to get a job at BMW and Mercedes, but nobody would hire me in L.A., so I just took a job with Lexus. And then from Lexus to BMW, Mercedes, Ferrari, Maserati.

How has it changed? I focus a lot more on customer service. My focus is taking care of the client because when you go to a dealership to acquire a car, it’s basically they want you in and they want you out. It’s a numbers game. I like to focus time on taking care of the clients and spending time with the clients. And trying to do events that may be worth their while, or something that might be engaging to them. That’s how I view it.

With Floyd, I saw that he called you and said he wanted a Bugatti in 12 hours. That sounds like an impossible task.

He called me at 3 in the morning. This was Bugatti No. 2. The second Bugatti I sold him, and he wanted it in 12 hours. This was approximately a year ago [in the lead-up to the first Marcos Maidana fight] because he wanted the car to drive to the gym that day. He wanted a different Bugatti to drive to the gym.

When he called you at 3 a.m., what was running through your head?

I was just getting accustomed to receiving calls from him in the middle of the night for the past six weeks. When he called me in the middle of the night, I would just basically keep the phone on. That particular night, when he called me, my wife was like, “Oh, my God, honey, who is this calling you?” I picked up the call, walked downstairs as I’m talking to him, and he told me he wanted a car in his driveway in 12 hours.

I was a little foggy, obviously, I was in a deep sleep. So first thing I did was I hopped in the shower. You gotta wake yourself up. Got dressed, then I went to my office. I got to my office around 4:45, 5 in the morning. … Once I hung up with him, I’m just thinking of a strategy of how I’m going to get him this car in that time frame. …

I knew where there were a few cars. I said, well, I need to hop on a plane. I think I took a 7:30 flight out in the morning. I went to a destination that was closest to him that I felt I could get the car to him. When I got there, they weren’t open yet. So I went to IHOP, got some breakfast, then I went there and said I want to buy this Bugatti. They thought that I wasn’t serious. I called my partner, wired the money. Then the problem was trying to get a truck to flatbed it to his home. That was the biggest problem. The biggest hiccup was trying to find a specialized flatbed. When I called him, I said, “Champ, the problem is going to be getting the car to your house on a flatbed.” He goes, “I don’t care; just drive it to me.” I won’t tell you where I was, so I hit the road, and I drove it to him. That’s how I got it to him. …

On Bugatti No. 3, he called me at around 4:30 in the afternoon, and he wanted that car at his place by midnight. That was feasible because that car was in the L.A. area.

Is that just the life of a luxury exotic-car dealer?

He will call me on cars that are $500,000 and up. $1 million, $2 million, $3 million, that’s when I’ll get the call. I sold him a lot of [Rolls-Royces], and I sold him a lot of Bentleys. I don’t know if a franchised dealer is willing to do what I do. I don’t know if a franchised dealer is going to be able to take the phone calls in the middle of the night. I don’t know if they’re going to be able to open up their showroom in the middle of the night for him.

My rule with Floyd is one hour. Floyd will call me and say, “I’m on my way.” He’ll call me at midnight, 12:30, 1, 2 in the morning and say, “I’m on my way.” That means he’s on his way to my dealership. The only thing I ask of him is just give me one hour because I’ve got to get up and get ready and head to the dealership. My dealership is about 45 minutes from my house. He will call me in Las Vegas, sitting on his jet about to take off, and tell me he’s on his way. It takes him about 45 minutes to get to L.A. from Vegas. I try to give him service that nobody else will provide.

Do you think he’s trying to challenge you?

You never know what his next move is going to be. You never know. … I don’t know if he challenges me, I just know he has high expectations of himself, so therefore there are going to be high expectations of everybody around him. There isn’t any room for mediocrity at all. It doesn’t exist. …

We’re in a restaurant at 12:30 at night in Vegas, and we’re just sitting there hanging out. He tells the guy to go to my car and get a bag. They get a bag, he goes to the bathroom, he runs out of the bathroom, out of the restaurant and just keeps running! It’s his security detail’s job to realize he’s going jogging [and] to hop in their cars and follow him for 7 miles! It’s incredible.

I’m at the Wynn resort in Vegas. He calls me at 12:30 [after] midnight, and Vegas is on fire. He says, “Obi, what are you doing?” I say I’m just hanging out. He says, “OK, why don’t you come meet me at Fatburger?” I go to Fatburger on the strip, and I hang out with him at Fatburger. From there, we go to his house. We’re hanging out at his house. Then these bags start moving around. I said, “Floyd what are we doing?” He said, “Let’s go to the gym.”

At 3:30 in the morning, he starts heading to the gym. He spars for one hour, killing these sparring partners. And then he runs out of the gym and starts running for 7 miles. I have him on video. He doesn’t care what time it is. If he feels the need to do what he wants to do to workout and train, he’s going to do it. I don’t know if he challenges me or if I’m just in this environment of his and this is just how he operates. It keeps me on my toes. It makes me want to work harder. It makes me think out of the box. I push myself harder. I take it all in stride, and I appreciate the opportunity. I make sure that I do whatever I can possibly do to meet and fulfill his needs and his demands. I view it as a blessing.

I know you said in that video that he forces you to raise your game.

Absolutely, I raise my game. It puts me out of my comfort zone. Sometimes we need to be out of our comfort zone.

(Okeke speaks later on about Mayweather’s generosity.)

He’s got a residence at the Ritz-Carlton in downtown LA. If he’s there for like a week, when he leaves, he will gather every single valet driver, 10 or 11 of them. He will distribute anywhere from $8,000 to $10,000 to each of the valet guys. If you look at Floyd, and you look at the games he goes to, whether the Lakers games, the Clippers games. Whatever game he goes to, whoever’s with him staffwise, they’re with him. They all watch the game. He doesn’t just buy tickets for himself and then leaves everybody outside. He buys tickets for himself and everybody. He brings them in to watch the game. …

I was at his house the other night. I was trying to leave. I said, “Floyd, I’ll be right back” because I hadn’t eaten all day. … He said, “Don’t go anywhere, let me call my chef.” He calls his chef; she comes over an hour later and cooks this big meal for everybody. The guy is an anomaly. I’ve never met anybody like this man.

Would you think he was a fighter by just looking at his personality?

No. His personality, if you hung out with him and you never knew who he was, you would think he was a mathematician or a nuclear physicist. If you just looked at him and looked at his face and just talked to him, you would think that. He always has a strategy. … He’s a guy with a plan.

Have you thought about opening a store in Vegas?

We think about it; we talk about it. Because of where we are in a very remote area, [Mayweather] drives out to the middle of nowhere to see me. I open up in the middle of the night every time. Seventy percent of our cars go out of state, so yeah, we could definitely operate in a place like Vegas. … I’m out there five to six times a month right now. Sometimes I’m there three times in a week.

Looking at Mayweather’s car collection, do you think that’s part of his competitive spirit to have the rarest cars?

It’s part of his lifestyle. Floyd understands that there are a lot of people that claim to be living a lifestyle they are not living. And he is living that lifestyle. Unlike anybody else, he has no debt. He has no debt on any of his cars and real estate holdings. He has a tremendous amount of cars and a tremendous amount of real estate — and no debt. There are celebrities out there I know, and a lot people know, that finance their cars and lease their cars. All of their Bugattis are financed and leased. He’s got three Bugattis that are all cash. Every car in his garage, all cash. All of the condos he has in Vegas, all cash. Fifth Avenue in New York, cash. Miami, 7,000-square-foot penthouse, cash. LA, cash. The thing about Floyd, he is the only signatory on his account. Nobody manages his money but him. So when I get paid, it’s not like we’re waiting for the business office. It’s all Floyd. He writes the check himself.

Nobody else does that?

No. Everybody that I’ve dealt with, the money was coming from their business office, or [an] agent was going to get the money to me. He is the first celebrity I’ve met that writes his own check, that manages his own money. I’m not expecting a check from a CPA or an agent or anything. It’s from him.

CHESSBOARD:While other tribes are sending their kindred to go teach their language in an un-benefitting countries, Igbos are sending their kindred to go bring back wealth as usual to Igbo land...kudos UMU IGBO

Chestbeating at its altitude. Must you drag yoruba tribe into this?

Are yeeboo the only tribe doing well outside nigeria?Life isn't all about money and wealth...Stop this jealousy yoruba are proud of their culture and our culture/language is going places/taking over the world.

certainly on the generation NEXXXT train. Born in Washington, DC, Ayinde grew up in a home where his parents played King Sunny Ade, Fela, Kollington e.t.c non-stop. His nickname used to be Koko. Try being called KOKO among your peers in school, in America when you are tall, lanky, very dark with features that at that time did not seem appealing. Kids can be so cruel. King Sunny Ade’s song that mentioned the name Ayinde got him to appreciate his name even more. So one day, Ayinde came home and told his mother he wanted to be called Ayinde and nothing else from then on. It stuck and he embraced his name. He started out in life wanting to be a fireman: a career that symbolizes great service, pure trust and selflessness in America. Who would have imagined he would be a part of this new digital generation putting Africa, Nigeria on the map.A graduate of Juniata College in Huntingdon, PA with a degree in Public Administration and Marketing, Ayinde Alakoye is an avid athlete that played professional volleyball for years and built a name for himself in that world. He is now however a member of the new generation of entrepreneurs. He has been in the TV and radio industry in the United States for most of his career doing sales, management and more. Ayinde Alakoye is the CEO and Co-founder of Hitch Radio, Inc. Hitch Radio is a social network built upon real-time broadcast radio search. You type in what you want to hear and Hitch Radio searches their network of over 33,000 radio stations in real-time to find what stations are playing what you want to hear right now. Once you find a station, you can hitch-a-ride and listen to that song or artist and then discover what plays next. Hitch Radio is currently in its beta stage and will be launching very soon.Not only is he in the forefront of the NEXXXT Generation, Ayinde is also a former speech writer for President Barack Obama and an on-going advisor to the White House. Ayinde was amplified when he was one of the millionaire bachelors to be a part of the Bravo TV reality show “The Millionaire Matchmaker.”. He was the audience favorite on the 2010 season of the hit show. Feel free to go to youtube.com and put in search words “Ayinde on millionaire matchmaker.”This handsome and single (yes, single as of today) entrepreneur Ayinde will be in Nigeria for the first time this fall. I expect he will enjoy himself immensely. When asked why he was single he said “I’ve been told that I need an African woman.” We present to you Mr. Ayinde Alakoye.How did the idea of Hitch Radio become a part of you?Like any good invention, Hitch Radio kind of happened by accident. It was 2007, and we were analyzing the market after shutting the doors on a precursor wireless radio technology that was getting copycatted everywhere. So, we started brainstorming around the question, “what can we create from all of our knowledge about radio (and the growing demand) that would really be of value to the consumer and stand out?” We came up with the idea of real-time search; basically, we thought it would be cool to add a Google search box on to our technology. Then in 2009, we asked, “What if we made all of this social, too? So that people who were searching for music could see who else was searching for the same thing and listen live with their friends as their song is streaming.”When did you realize what affect Hitch Radio could have on people and how different has that initial thought changed since conception of the idea?I had a Nigerian friend of mine tell me, “Ayinde! I listen to God every day on Hitch!” I was like, what do you mean? He told me, he types in “God” or “Jesus” everyday to find sermons being streamed from all over the world. When he told me this, it really sunk in that Hitch Radio was bigger than me. Bigger than anything I could have ever imagined. I had never thought of using the technology like this and it showed me that everyone can create their own experience with Hitch Radio. That’s powerful!How do you incorporate Social Media into Hitch Radio and what new media innovations should we expect from Hitch Radio?Never before have you been able to see radio listeners before. The internet makes it possible to take the blinders off and, if you choose, to meet other people who have the same musical taste that you have.For example, if you try to find-a-ride from Lagos with a music request and someone else tries to find-a-ride from Nairobi, you both can end up hitching-a-ride on the same King Sunny Ade song at the same moment on the same radio station. This is a strong, organic connection. It’s not manufactured. It’s a real connection that two people (or more) share and we want to see what can come of these connections.One of the other things that Hitch Radio allows you to do is to know exactly what is going to play on the radio. The radio used to be a mystery box of sorts. You never knew when or where your favorites would play. Now, you know with Hitch Radio.How have your skills and abilities in playing professional volleyball helped you in marketing your company?I suppose you could characterize me as being “mild-mannered” until you see me on the volleyball court. I can be pretty fierce. I try to harness that aggressiveness when I am promoting my company. You have to earn your points on the court just like you do off the court. It doesn’t have to be hard, but it does require a concentrated effort.Do you find that being on Bravo TV’s Millionaire Matchmaker has helped you with Hitch Radio or has it all just been publicity?I think it has helped in a way that I couldn’t have expected. I think when I say, we have 33,000 radio stations to listen to on Hitch Radio, people pay attention. They don’t think its science fiction something made up. They understand that Hitch Radio is in position to be very big. The show definitely helped with that.As a man of Nigerian Heritage, what “Nigerian” skill or abilities would you say you have utilized that help put you and your brand ahead of the curve?I am very proud of my Nigerian heritage even though, like many Americans, it is not simple. My parents were both “American.” My father, who passed in 1980, was born in New York City and my mother Philadelphia. When my parents met in NY in the 60’s, during the latter part of the civil rights movement, my father’s ideas were considered very radical. Though most were stressing an unconnected “Black America” my father taught and published poems about our rich African ancestry. I have been told that you would never see my father without a book in his hand as he studied the African Diaspora intensely. He and my mother eventually change their names and began to practice Yoruba to reconnect us to the culture that was taken from us. My father was named, Adesanya, and my mother, Amoke. When I was born, I was named in a traditional naming ceremony by a Yoruba priest, as well. Obviously, my name is very important to me because of the sacrifice my late father made culturally and economically to restore our heritage to us. So, I was pleased when we recently discovered a blood link to Nigeria through my mother’s mother’s side. I plan to do more research to know more specifics about our Nigerian blood line in the future. Perhaps, it’s that renegade quality that my father possessed that is still with me today. I am sure it is that same independent thinking that I have taken into Hitch Radio to keep us ahead of the curve. We can thank Ade for that.You are one of the Advisors to President Barack Obama. Is there any advice you have applied to your business model that you have also shared with the Advisory team?Make it personal. During the debate on Health Care, I was seeing that The White House had allowed the debate to get into the minutiae and off track with false characterizations like death panels. One of the things I counseled was to remind the American public that Barack’s own mother had died because of an inability to afford and manage proper healthcare. The president was in effect the poster child for Health Reform, but they were not using his story. We do the same thing with Hitch Radio. It’s not about music. You can get music anywhere! It’s about a personal connection you have with your friends when you post a ride you are on to Facebook or Twitter. It’s about the personal connection with the DJ you find in the UK that says something that makes you laugh. Radio is personal and Hitch Radio is as well.Your professional background has mostly been in Entertainment: TV, Radio e.t.c . If you were not in the entertainment industry. What industry do you think would interest you and Why?That’s easy. I would be in politics. I love politics, particularly shaping public opinion and have always wanted to help people. After college I worked on Capitol Hill for a little while. But, I realized that Washington, D.C. was broken in many ways. I felt like the people who were making the changes were the people who were not dependent on money they didn’t answer to anyone but their conscience because they were independently wealthy. So, I sought to be one of those people. Right now I hope I am helping people by making their lives a little easier with technology. And, ultimately, Hitch Radio can bring people together from all over the world and put more understanding in places that need it.When should we look forward to your brand extending to other African Countries? Do you have any interest in business in Nigeria? Why or Why not?We have always set out to be a global company with Hitch Radio. We want every radio listener in the world, particularly my brothers and sisters in Nigeria, to use Hitch Radio as a part of their daily routine because it will allow them to get the content they want faster, free and in a more enjoyable manor. Information is very important and the spoken word is very important particularly to African culture, so Hitch Radio must be big in Nigeria and all over the continent.Many countries in Africa are now known as “Emerging Markets” Do you see Hitch Radio coming to be a part of this emergence?Perhaps the most important thing to me is to do anything I can to be a part of the movement to restore Africa to its birthright of power and grace on the planet. I believe, as Africa goes, so goes the world. When we have a strong, stable and vibrant Africa, we will have a strong, stable and vibrant planet again.If you could develop an ideal programming for a Nigerian version of Hitch Radio. What should we expect?That’s really the beauty of Hitch Radio, it is universal in many ways. But, I do believe in customization and we would like to work with Nigerian product managers to see what, if anything, we have missed that will make Hitch Radio more personal to more Nigerians.What do you do to get away from all the Entertainment and relax or rejuvenate?In the morning, I play volleyball with a group of 10 or 12 guys who have all at one time or another played at the highest level of the sport. It is fun to get out there with them, scream and scramble for the ball, run and jump, and utterly finish exhausted after a great couple of hours rallying. When I am out there, I don’t have my blackberry, I am surrounded by sand, ocean and beautiful scenery. It’s heaven.Name one single moment you recall in the past 9 months that has profoundly changed your thought process or your life?I was meeting with one of my advisors about nine months ago exactly and she hit me on the head and told me that I was playing small. Other than the fact that she is a very charismatic woman, I don’t know why I chose to listen to her that moment, but I did. And from that moment on, things have been (and are continuing to) move at lightning speed with my company and me personally. It’s amazing what we can do when we open our eyes to all that we are.What one word would you use to describe your drive and ambition and why?Perseverance. I graduated from Juniata College and while I was there I played on their Division 1 volleyball squad. When I graduated my coach sent me a gift and on the card, which I still have today, he wrote, “Perseverance is your greatest strength.” I just looked at that card for the first time in 15-years the other day and had to shake my head. The same was true then as it is today. I don’t know how to quit. I keep charging ahead and I think doors open when you show the Universe that you are committed to your goals happening one way or the other no matter what.What should we look forward to with Ayinde Alakoye as a brand and Hitch Radio?There are a number of opportunities opening up for me right now. I am so grateful. I do not know how it will look, the How is all God, but I can tell you that it will be big, it will be global and more great things are coming through me!

CHESSBOARD:While other tribes are sending their kindred to go teach their language in an un-benefitting countries, Igbos are sending their kindred to go bring back wealth as usual to Igbo land...kudos UMU IGBO

You will ruin this lovely thread with your rubbish. As a married elderly man, you dont need all these trash.

I don't trust igbo on this, he maybe cocaine dealer that leads to that company, I know that nemesis will caught him up one day, were the world will see the sources of his boom, u know oyinbo people, there is nothing like immunity in their country....